Whoever said one had to travel across the Atlantic to Germany to experience the wonders of Bauhaus? In our study of the Bauhaus movement and how it relates or does not relate to present day Berlin, we focused so intently on uncovering the mystery we once percieved as Bauhaus that we nearly overlooked critical Bauhaus elements present in our very own backyard. Lucky us! In the process of researching we discovered that the cooperative living dormitory of the college, otherwise know as Ferry House, was in fact a genuine Bauhaus structure. The discovery came as a pleasant surprise, providing us with a wonderful opportunity to study a real Bauhaus structure up close on a very personal level with the added security of not having to leave our beautiful campus. The Ferry House was constructed in 1951 through a generous gift of the Ferry family. The cooporative living house underwent a moderate renovation last fall and the living quarters presently accomodate approximately twenty Vassar students. Admission to the house may be sought by any Vassar student regardless of class year. Although admission is based on random drawing, the process remains relatively competitive as a result of consistently large applicant pools.

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The routine of daily life promoted and fostered in Ferry House is surprisingly reminiscent of many of the basic ideals of the Bauhaus -- collective enterprise, collective living, and collective production in an attempt to satisfy the social need, in this case the needs of the community of the house. In regard to the design of the house, the motif of large, uninhibited spaces and over-sized windows that literally bath the interior in light (or dark, depending on the weather here in Poughkeepsie), motifs of design characterisitic in many Bauhaus structures, are apparent. There exists very little ornamentation either on the interior or exterior of the structure and clear, simple geometric shapes serve as the basis for the contruction. Consistent with Bauhaus ideaology, the exterior construction of the building speaks very accurately of the interior found within. The structural support of the building is presented to us in terms one immediately recognizes and is able to understand, and all spaces appear to be utilized in a fashion appropriate to and consistent with their planned functions.